South Korea to Play Austria in Crucial Pre-World Cup Friendly

Korea will face Austria in Vienna in a pre-World Cup friendly match this spring, the national football federation announced Tuesday. The Korea Football Association (KFA) said Korea and Austria will square off at Ernst-Happel-Stadion in the Austrian capital at 8:45 p.m. on March 31. It will be the first match between these two countries. Korea checked in at No. 22 in the latest FIFA rankings released Tuesday, while Austria sat two spots below. Both countries have qualified for this year's FIFA World Cup, to be co-hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada. Korea won their group in the Asian qualifiers, and Austria fended off Romania and Bosnia and Herzegovina to top their group in Europe and book their first World Cup ticket since 1998. The KFA said it hopes the Austria match will help prepare the national team for a World Cup group stage match against a European opponent. Korea have been drawn into Group A alongside Mexico, South Africa and a European playoff winner to be determined in March. Denmark, the Czech Republic, Ireland and North Macedonia will vie for that spot. The KFA said the match in Vienna will be the second of two matches that it is trying to schedule during the March 23-31 FIFA international match window. The first match will also be in Europe. Yonhap